Mine
by sansyeux
Summary: Iruka made a huge mistake and Kakashi wants to know what it was./dom•sub/kakairu
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** English is not my first language. Sorry for any spelling mistakes.

 **Disclaimer** : I do not own Naruto.

* * *

"Hey, you better watch where you're going," Shiranui Genma said as he jumped out of the way, near hitting the front window of a restaurant as he came out of it.

Genma was clearly drunk. The masked ninja standing next to him didn't seem to pay the Special Jōnin any attention. Hatake Kakashi stood there, one hand in his pocket and the other holding a small orange book. But his single exposed eye moved to look at the person that had almost bumped into his friend and hadn't stopped or even turned to apologize.

"Oi! You about to get fucked up if you don't watch where you're going" Genma yelled a little too loud, in a deep, booming voice that would have carried up and down the street no matter how loud he tried to be. Heads turned in a flash, and for a brief second the Special Jōnin regretted he had yelled like he did.

It only took another second for Genma to get even more pissed when he realized that the one person whose attention he was trying to get hadn't even heard him.

Kakashi couldn't help but to notice the whole scene, especially the ninja who was in his own little world, and had made Genma jump out of the way. The ninja wasn't familiar to Kakashi, and he could be easily be mistaken for a civilian, if he wasn't wearing the village's standard uniform and forehead protector. He was totally unaware of his surroundings. No ninja should be that distracted; they should always be alert, even when they thought they were in a 'safe' place.

The distracted ninja was holding a catalog envelope like his life depended on it. He was short (Probably 3 or 4 inches shorter than Kakashi), his skin was naturally tanned and his hair, which was combed into a ponytail, was brown...Kakashi somehow couldn't stop staring at him.

"Look if it isn't Iruka," said Raidō (who was also drunk) "Genma , that guy just walked over your ass and he didn't even apologized. That's fucked up!"

It seemed like the scarred Jōnin was good in getting under Genma's skin. Raidō didn't know what was more amazing to him, that he saw Genma having to jump out of the way like a second-class civilian, or that Umino Iruka, a Chūnin, was still ignoring Genma as he was calling him out in front of half the people in the village!

"Oh, this is not over yet." Genma said as he regained his composure and started walking with a purpose toward Iruka.

Iruka was walking way too slow totally unaware of what was going on around him. Human nature makes you slow down a bit when your instincts tell you that you're doing something that is about to cause you harm. Iruka just didn't know how much harm was stomping its way towards him at that moment.

He felt a hard slap on the back of his head and he half-jumped and half-fell forward. The envelope he was carrying was catapulted out of his hands into the crowd of people in front of him.

He was about to fall flat on his face, but that envelope was still on his mind. It never occurred to Iruka that there was more to worry about right behind him. He just wasn't afraid of anything, at least not anything in the village. His mind was elsewhere.

"Hey, Iruka" Genma caught up with Iruka and grabbed him by the collar, pulling hard and spinning him around. "Or should I call you 'sensei' now?" The Special Jōnin grinned.

"Shiranui-san...can-can I help you?" The look of surprise on Iruka's face was unmistakable.

The commotion and the slap had drawn attention and the people who had been walking, laughing and talking with their friends and family were now focused on what was happening. Iruka just realized he was in the middle of what looked like a fight ring, all eyes were on him and Genma. His Sunday night was getting strange really fast.

Ibiki, who was passing close by, came running up. "What is going on here?" he asked.

"Nothing," Genma said releasing Iruka's collar. He knew Ibiki didn't tolerate fights between ninjas, though he wasn't going to fight, but just play a little with the Chūnin. "I was just talking with Iruka. I heard he just started teaching at the Academy...I was asking him about that, isn't that right Iruka?"

Iruka looked at Genma who was now smiling at him, not sure what say. He really didn't know what was happening. He'd done something that made the Special Jōnin upset. But what it was, he didn't know. So he decided just to nod instead of giving a proper answer.

Ibiki sighed. He could see that Genma was drunk. And when a ninja is drunk, he's dangerous even to himself. Ibiki walked up to Genma and the other Jōnins and told them to go home, and at the same time announced "there's nothing to see here" to the crowd.

Iruka paused a moment or two longer, and finally turned and started walking away, but then noticed someone staring at him.

Kakashi had stood there, watching the whole scene. He broke eye contact with Iruka long enough to look around, noticing people starting to move along, back to their lives and ignoring what just had happened. He looked back at Iruka, who had never moved from his original position. He got a good long unhurried look at him for the first time. Iruka looked young. Kakashi guessed that he was probably 19 or 20. He had a scar across his nose that made him look kinda cute, an absolute gorgeous slim body, and the deepest dark-brown eyes he'd ever seen. Kakashi felt like he could lose himself in those chocolate pools if he stared long enough.

After he had looked him up from head to toe a couple of times, Kakashi looked Iruka dead in the face. Their eyes were locked. There was something about Iruka's blank expression and the way he stared right back, that Kakashi liked for some reason, although he couldn't put his finger on it. He was the center of Iruka's attention now. The tanned ninja was focused just on him.

Kakashi kept his eyes on Iruka's ass as he slowly walked away, and he felt the hairs on his arms prick up a little. About ten feet away Iruka stopped and slowly turned back to look at Kakashi. Those hairs pricked up a little more. _What the hell,_ Kakashi thought to himself. But he couldn't take his eye away.

He sighed as he jutsu'ed himself to the restaurant's roof. He couldn't understand why he'd stared at that Chūnin the way he did. He couldn't deny, the Chūnin was very attractive, and there was something in those dark-brown eyes that made Kakashi's body tremble.

Kakashi had his share of lovers in his 25 years. He'd lost his virginity at the age of 13. He'd slept with both man and woman. So he wasn't surprised of his attraction towards the Chūnin.

But there was more. More than just attraction. Those dark-brown eyes were awakening something in Kakashi he thought had buried a long time ago... _maa, maybe I drunk a little bit too much_. He sighed again. He took his book out of his pocket and started reading. He didn't want to go home yet.

He tried to focus on the words in the book but his eye caught something else. There, in the middle of the crowd was that Chūnin again. He wanted to go down and maybe talk with him, but there he sat. He couldn't take his eyes off Iruka, even though he didn't even know anything about the younger man.

Kakashi felt rain falling lightly. He was starting to get wet but he didn't move. He put his book back in his pocket as he kept watching Iruka walking in the middle of the crowd. 5 minutes later Iruka slowed and started searching the ground of the street for something. He was looking at the ground, ducking around people that were passing by. Kakashi knew what he was looking for. That envelope. Iruka was back in the spot where the slapdown had happened. Iruka was so intent on looking around that he nearly ran into a few people who didn't seem to appreciate him slowly moving and looking at the floor instead of where he was going.

 _Maa, what the hell he's doing? He's going to trip up somebody else, all because of that envelope again_. Kakashi watched Iruka's movements, noticing how intently the Chūnin scanned the floor, and continued to notice how he wasn't paying a damn bit of attention to the people who he kept bumping into.

But then Kakashi saw it. Right under the vases of the flower shop was the envelope, right there beside were Iruka was searching. From that angle the Copy-nin could tell that the Chūnin wouldn't be able to see it, unless he got down on his hands and knees and looked underneath. Iruka kept moving, and by the time Kakashi left the roof and walked over there, Iruka was 10 or 15 feet away. Kakashi reached down and pulled out the envelope. It was a little bit dirty and wet from the light rain, but remarkably it looked intact. He slipped it in to his pocket and turned around. He took two steps and went home.

* * *

Kakashi took off his flak jacket and sat on his bed. He looked at the envelope. It was written a name and an address on it.

 _Umino Iruka_.

He sighed softly and put the envelope in the bottom of his desk drawer and threw himself back on his bed. He gave a quick look at clock and groaned. He should be sleeping. He couldn't. It was four in the morning. He was off duty for at least another week, which meant a full week without worrying about someone trying to kill him in his sleep. Well, a full week where it was much less likely that someone would try to kill him in his sleep.

Every time he closed his eyes, the Chūnin, Umino Iruka would appear in his mind. He really didn't know why.

Iruka was a just a Chūnin. He should be beneath Kakashi's notice but instead he seemed to be all the Jōnin could notice. He kept thinking about the him. He kept remembering how Iruka had stared at him with those big dark-brown eyes.

He wanted to give the envelope back, but at the same time he was curious to know what was inside of it. _No, It's wrong_. He thought to himself, _curiosity killed the cat._

He should go to Umino's house and leave the envelope by the door or something and forget all about it. But he didn't want that. He didn't want to forget. He wanted to see and talk with Iruka and know the reason of the emptiness behind his eyes.

He stood up, took out a kunai from his back pouch and pressed the blade against his thump until blood came, then he formed the seals for the summoning jutsu and pressed his hand flat onto the floor. Immediately, a cloud of smoke rose and the silhouette of his pug appeared.

"What is it boss? Can't sleep?" Pakkun asked a little bit annoyed. It was clear that his sleep was interrupted, but as always Kakashi ignored it.

"I want you to deliver a message to someone."

Pakkun yawned. "Whom?"

"Umino Iruka. Here's the address." Kakashi took the envelope out of his drawer and showed it to Pakkun to read Iruka's address. "Tell him that I want to meet him tomorrow at the Academy. I have his envelope."

The nin-dog nodded and disappeared. Kakashi laid back on his bed and looked over at his clock. _Five hours to go._

* * *

Iruka was sitting in his bedroom at his small apartment. He had a desk that looked out through a picture window, past a small balcony. Iruka sat at that desk, his view switching back and forth from the silver moonlight of the summer night outside to the inky blackness of his bedroom.

He'd spent a lot of time on that desk, studying, reading scrolls and books, planing missions...but now he would use it to correct homeworks and planing lessons.

He knew he should be more excited about his work at the Academy, but he wasn't. When Sarutobi had ask him to stop taking missions and start work as a teacher instead, Iruka knew for sure that the Hokage was practically saying that he'd failed as a ninja.

He let out a loud sigh. He wasn't comfortable sitting there, as he had been so many hundreds of hours in the past. He breathed deeply and once again stared out the window.

The lights from the street cast a glow on the Weeping Willow branches that hung along one side of his balcony, as a slight breeze caused the branches to sway gently. The branches crossed over one another as they swayed back and forth, creating layers of shadows - layers of darkness streaming down. He watched those dark branches swaying and as his focus softened, the image in his mind slowly melded in to silver spiky hair.

His mind took him straight to Hatake Kakashi. Yeah, he knew the man. Who didn't? He was famous inside and outside of village. But what Iruka couldn't understand was the way the Copy-nin was staring at him. _What was it about him?_ Iruka wondered.

He also wouldn't deny it. Kakashi was sexy, of that Iruka now had no doubt. This week had proven to him that men could be attractive, and that he could take pleasure from being with a man - take pleasure in ways he had never experienced with any of the girls he had made love to in the past. This week had also proven to him that the forbidden fruit was forbidden for a reason, and breaking the rules can lead you on the line.

He started to think back on Kakashi staring at him so intently, that fierce look in his single exposed eye, that later didn't look so fierce, but looked more intent and serious and important as the night went on. Iruka felt a chill down his neck.

He knew he was frozen that night, not out of fear from the Copy-nin, but out of fear from another man. A man he'd always considered as a best friend.

Today when he was about to leave home and go to the market with a what-to-buy list, he'd found a catalog envelope by his door. He grabbed it and took it with him. As he was walking through the street, he started to read the list of things he needed to buy. There's was no possible distraction big enough to pull him away from what he was reading, no obstacles he wouldn't have walked straight through as he marched forward slowly. He was in his own world, there's no doubt...when he finished reading the list, he mentally started planning what to buy first and where. As he was about to put the list in his pocket he felt the brown envelope. He'd almost forgotten about it.

He knew he should wait to get home to open it, but curiosity spoke louder. He wondered what was inside and who had sent it. Hr took the envelope out of his pocket and scanned for some minutes. When he opened it and saw what it contained, it cast a shroud over Iruka's body that blocked out everything else happening around him. Nothing could have broken that miserable spell. Nothing could get his attention.

 _Nothing_.

Nothing, except the Jōnins that were probably on their day off and went out to drink at that hour.

What Iruka was dealing with that night totally eclipsed the world around him. He was sure if he didn't bumped into Genma, he would have slammed head first into a wall. And although he didn't know it, in a way, Genma's attack might have saved him from a worse fate. God only knows what would have happened if he had tried to go home with his mind locked up like it was earlier than same evening.

That week Iruka had learned that a part of him craved the strength and power of a man. Part of him needed the relief and peace that comes from shedding the responsibilities and obligations of manhood, if only for an hour, and placing yourself entirely in the control of another. He didn't really understand it, the thoughts were still too new, too untested, too unrefined and too raw. He realized he could get pleasure from providing pleasure to another. He discovered that by submitting himself to a man, by lowering himself, he raised himself up somehow and felt satisfaction and comfort and purpose. Contentment.

Masculinity wasn't a concept that occupied Iruka's thoughts until this week. It was something he took for granted, a force like gravity that no one questions and everyone depends on.

Iruka wasn't weak or feminine. There was no swish to his walk, no limp-wristed mannerisms, and no fake bravado either. He was a man. But somehow he started feeling things he shouldn't feel towards other men, leaving him confused about his sexualliy and that made him commit a huge mistake.

He sighed as he looked at his clock. 4:35am. He wanted to sleep but couldn't. He stood up and padded into the kitchen. Maybe a cup of tea will make me feel better. He was rooting around in the cupboard for some tealeaves when he heard the unmistakable sound of someone clearing their throat behind him. Whirling around in surprise he let go of the glass jar in his hand, wincing as it shattered on the ground near his bare foot.

"What…how...?" It was all what Iruka could stammer as he looked widely at the intruder.

There was a dog in his apartment. A dog dressed as ninja. _A nin-dog?_ Iruka stared at the dog amazingly. He'd never seen a nin-dog before. He wondered if he could touch it

"Umino Iruka?" the little pug said with a very human sounding voice.

Iruka nodded slowly. "Yes..."

"I have a message for you, from my boss." Iruka nodded again wondering who was the pug's Boss. "he wants to meet with you, in the Academy. He has your envelope."

Before Iruka could say something the nin-dog disappeared in a puff of smoke. He stared at the spot where the pug was for a long time. Then all of the sudden he started panicking. Someone had his envelope. Someone knew about him. _Oh Kami what am I going to do?_ He took a deep breath and tried to calm himself down. His life was ruined.


	2. Chapter 2

Kakashi wanted to get to the Academy early. He had been watching the clock for the last few hours, and he jumped from roof to roof an hour and a half before he was where he was supposed to meet Iruka.

He stood outside of the Academy, Icha Icha in one hand, and the other, inside of his pocket.

He wondered if Iruka would show up. He knew he would. He remembered Genma saying something about Iruka being the new teacher, so he had to show up. Besides, if that envelope was really important, he would do anything to get it back.

As he watched the children playing in the playground , he thought back to last night, and to how Iruka seemed to be obsessed by that envelope. Now Kakashi really regretted not trying to open it. Well, he still could do it, but there's was a little voice in the back of his mind telling not to.

Kakashi put his book in his pocket and looked around the Academy, he could see through the windows the students in the classroom, some writing and focused on what their teacher was saying, others chatting and laughing.

As he rounded the corner he looked around, trying to find a place to settle back and wait for Iruka. It was his ninja nature to hide in the shadows when he was tracking something. This wasn't exactly a hunt, but he still wanted the element of surprise. He wanted to keep an eye on the Chūnin for a while, watch his reactions, see what he was going to do... He still needed to figure out how he was going to play this.

He sat on a bench, not very far from the Academy. And from there he saw Iruka walking towards him, no more than 10 feet away and getting closer. The Chūnin looked pissed. There was paint in his hair and uniform. Kakashi laughed lowly. He knew exactly where the paint came from. That was one of the main reasons he would never teach brats.

Kakashi knew he had to think fast. Iruka was getting closer. He stood up and started walking, aiming right for Iruka. Face-to-face. Might as well get it over with...They got within a couple of feet, and finally Iruka seemed to notice him. The tanned man slowed quickly, but Kakashi walked right up to him. They would have run in to each other, but Iruka moved out of the way quickly, and they just brushed arms in the exchange.

"Oh, sorry," said Iruka quickly, averting his eyes.

Kakashi knew he recognized him, but it wasn't clear at all that he knew that Kakashi had planned the meeting. The Copy-nin stopped and turned around, and saw Iruka slowly walking on, not looking back, as if he was trying to pretend the brush-up had never happened...

"Umino Iruka." Iruka froze. Kakashi saw his hand shake a little, as Iruka realized he wasn't going to be able to just keep walking.

Iruka turned slowly, and look back towards the voice behind him. Kakashi stood there, and to Iruka he seemed tall and steady, like a brick wall, unmoving. He walked slowly towards him, keeping his eyes on his face. Iruka would normally have averted his eyes, not wanting the aggression of maintaining eye contact with someone that he didn't know, and probably shouldn't want to know. But this time he kept looking. He didn't look Kakashi over from head to toe. He kept staring right in his single exposed dark-grey eye. His eye seemed so dark, but there was a flash in that darkness. Iruka was unsure if that flash was a good sign.

Kakashi returned the stare. There was an awkward silence. It might have only lasted 10 seconds, but it sure as hell seemed to last longer.

"Do you want your envelope back?"

Iruka's face couldn't hide the surprise. It was Hatake Kakashi the one who had his envelope? "I...I...yeah...I…" he stumbled, still off-guard.

"Follow me." And Kakashi started to walk away.

"I don't want any trouble, Hatake-san." Iruka sounded scared, or nervous at least. Kakashi decided it was fear. So many people in the village feared him, he was growing used to it.

"Just come with me, I'm not going to hurt you."

"Where are we going?"

Kakashi looked around, the children were staring at them. "Away from the Academy."

"Nah, I just..."

"Do you want the envelope? If I wanted to hurt you I could do it right here and right now, and noone would notice." Kakashi's voice was calm. There was no threat. "I promise you, I won't do anything. Just follow me." He turned and walked away again. He knew he wanted to get the younger man somewhere private, somewhere quiet.

Iruka followed.

 _Hatake Kakashi?_ Iruka was so confused.

He had plenty of time to think since last night, to go over what he could remember of the incident on the street. He'd been in another world. His pride shattered, he thought he was standing on the edge, about to fall off, and then it happened. Literally slapped back to reality, or close to it.

He studied this man walking in front of him. He watched his spiky silver hair gently blowing up from the light wind, and wondered what that must feel like. He really would like to pass his fingers through it.

As Kakashi walked on, Iruka got his first good chance to see him up close, at least from the back. He was tall. He didn't swung his arms as he walked. He kept both hands inside his pockets.

Iruka had come a long way in the past weeks, and it hadn't been an easy road to follow. But here he was, and the road he was following now didn't seem any easier.

He should be running now, running in the other direction. Was he walking in to another stupid situation? Willingly? He didn't even know what the Copy-nin would want to do with him. Couldn't he just give the envelope back and go back to his life. Almost everything in the silver-haired Jōnin told him to back away.

 _Almost_ everything.

And so he followed.

They reached the bench where Kakashi was sitting before. The Jōnin sat down in the same spot, and Iruka sat right across. There was a warm, brilliant sunlight streaming around them.

They sat in silence for a few minutes, starring each other down. Kakashi pulled the envelope out of his pocket and tossed it in the air. He caught it, held it up, and spun it around so Iruka could get a good look. "Here's the envelope."

"Uh, thanks, Hatake-san."

"Just one thing you have do for me, and then you can have it."

Iruka was worried. What kind of situation had he gotten himself in to. He could tell he wasn't going to like this...

 _What does he want?_ Iruka's mind flashed and he could feel his stomach sinking . _He said I had to do one thing and I could have the damn envelope back_. _What would he want from me? This can be a problem..._

They sat in silence for a while longer, staring eye to eye. Iruka knew the ball was in his court. Kakashi had made an offer.

"Hatake-san, I just want the envelope back, I don't want any trouble," he finally said...

"Maa. Who said you're in trouble, Iruka-sensei?"

Iruka blushed slightly. No-one until now (except the students in the Academy) had called him sensei. "I just.., I don't know what you want me to do..."

"I already told you, stay calm."

Iruka took a deep breath. "OK. Well what do you want me to do?"

Kakashi looked him over. He could tell Iruka wasn't as nervous - the fear was fading. At least for now. "All you need do is answer me one question."

There was no way to tell whether Kakashi was mad, sad or sleepy. Half of his face was covered and his voice betrayed no emotion.

"A question?"

"Yes."

"OK."

"Alright. Why were you so distracted last night?"

"Last night?"

"Yes. I wanted to say that it was Genma's fault because he was drunk but no. It was yours. You bumped into him and you didn't even see it."

Iruka looked down at his hands. He didn't know what to say. He couldn't tell Kakashi the truth. No way in hell. "I was preoccupied. Uh, with some business."

"What business? Reading what's inside of this envelope?"

"Yeah. It wasn't anything important. I just got absorbed, I guess."

"You guess?"

"Yeah. I... I'm sorry I ran into Shiranui-san."

"I don't think you are, Iruka-sensei. You don't even remember about it, do you?"

"Not really. I'm sorry."

"Why do you keep apologizing, you don't remember. And you bumped into Genma, not me."

"Well it seems like it upsets you, and I didn't mean... I didn't intend to upset you, and I'm sorry for that, that's all I mean."

Iruka couldn't understand why he was getting these questions. Kakashi didn't look mad. He seemed to be asking because he was upset about Iruka being distracted in the other night, and Iruka really didn't know what the Jōnin was talking about. All he could remember was getting slapped in the back, and losing the envelope. And the people in the street. And... Why did Kakashi care anyway.

Kakashi didn't know why he was asking these questions either. He intended to just give Iruka the envelope. From almost the moment Genma slapped him the other night and Kakashi saw him standing there dumbstruck, zoned-out, he had been wondering what was inside the envelope that made the tanned ninja be so unaware of his surroundings. He knew he was going to give the envelope Iruka, that had been his intention all along. But he could do that later. Maybe.

Kakashi knew that something was really bothering the Chūnin, and it was connected to something that was inside of the envelope. He had to find out what it was. It never occurred to him that it was none of his business, or that Iruka might not want him to know. But he was going to find out anyway. One way or another.

Kakashi never raised his voice, and he never even flinched. As far as Iruka could tell, he was just sitting there, patiently waiting for an answer. Iruka's mind flashed back to last night, and what he saw when he opened the envelope. He had intended to do some quick shopping, and not be at the street for long at all. Sunday nights in the street was not Iruka's stomping ground. But nothing about last night ended up as expected.

"Yeah, I'm sorry, Hatake-san, it was just personal business stuff I was reading, I should have been paying attention."

It never occurred to Iruka to ask Kakashi why Genma slapped him for just bumping into him. Clearly it was a mistake, an accident. Kakashi didn't seem like the type who wanted questions instead of answers... Best to just get this over with, make something up, get the envelope back and be on his way. He didn't mind looking at Kakashi, the Jōnin who was staring at him, gleaming in the sun. They were ten feet from the main entrance of the Academy, on a busy Monday, but they seemed like they were miles away.

But questions? Nah, this didn't make any sense. He'd apologized. Surely he didn't think he was going to tell him what was in the envelope. It wasn't any of his business. It wasn't anyone's business.

Kakashi looked at the envelope and sighed. "What do you have here that made you so distracted..."

"It's a letter from a friend, just that... I, um, I just wasn't expecting it. Kinda surprise me, but it was no big deal." Iruka laughed quietly. Maybe Kakashi would buy it. Iruka thought he was a good liar.

"You're lying."

Iruka smiled, and tried, again, to play it off... "I'm not, really Hatake-san, it was nothing, I was just killing time and got caught up reading the letter and that's it, I promise..."

Kakashi wasn't smiling.

Like a building fell on him, Iruka realized what was happening. Kakashi had the envelope, he'd opened it, he'd had seen it all. Iruka felt like he was going to faint. The blood was rushing to his head and he was coming to a full-on panic. Kakashi had seen it, and now he was going to do what? Blackmail him? Clown him? Oh no, this wasn't happening. _Dammit_.

"Hatake-san, can I have the envelope back, I've got to go?" Iruka got a little bolder now, the adrenaline starting to pump.

"Not yet." Contrary to Iruka, Kakashi was calm.

"But it doesn't have anything to do with you," Iruka said quickly, the irritation clear in his voice and in his face. "It's none of your business."

"I know, but I still want to know what's inside the envelope. And don't lie. I know it's not a letter." Kakashi's voice was so deep, almost soothing, but it didn't stop Iruka from reeling in panic.

 _Fuck!_ Iruka knew he was screwed. This guy wouldn't be asking all these damn questions if he hadn't seen what's inside of the damn envelope. He saw it, and now Iruka knew the flood was about to start. This was just the first incident. What would be next? His friends? The Hokage? _Fuck this. Fuck Mizuki. Damn. It's all his fault_. Iruka's mouth was dry and he finally felt the sun beating down on him. He wanted to hide, but here he was in broad daylight.

Kakashi watched Iruka's tan skin going from red to white, and the Chūnin really did look like he was about to explode. Not anger. It was terror. Kakashi kept his eye on him.

Iruka had had enough, though. If he didn't get out of there soon he was going to die. He jumped up, but stood in place. His voice shaking, the desperation clear, he asked again. "Hatake-san, please, can I just have the envelope?"

Kakashi just looked at him, not moving.

That was it. Iruka lost it completely. He just yelled "FUCK!" and started to walk away.

He was walking back towards the Academy's main entrance. He looked terrible. Kakashi could see him trembling as he walked away.

Iruka just wanted to get away. He needed to think - he needed to be away from the questions - needed to be away from all this...Rather than heading out towards his house, he was heading back to the Academy. He wasn't thinking. He stopped at the door, waiting for a teacher, who was carrying a pile of scrolls, to come out through the door. Even at the end of his world, his good breeding took over and he politely waited for the teacher to exit. The wait was just long enough for Kakashi.

Iruka felt a hand on his shoulder.

Kakashi walked up close behind him. Iruka's heart skipped a beat. He had no idea what would happen next. He didn't turn around, he just stood there. Kakashi kept his hand on the Chūnin's shoulder. It must have been an odd scene, if anyone was even paying attention.

Their bodies were only inches away.

Kakashi leaned his head in and calmly said, "It's okay, Iruka-sensei, here's the envelope."

With his other hand he reached around and held the envelope in front of Iruka. Iruka took it, and then he really lost it. He couldn't hold it in anymore, and the tears started flowing down his face. Even though he didn't make a sound, Kakashi could sense from his body that the Chūnin was sobbing. Iruka started to lean down, the emotion trying to bring him to his knees. As he slowly bent forward his body pressed in to Kakashi's, who was standing behind. Iruka's ass pressed up against Kakashi's waist, and the Jōnin noticed himself getting hard.

When Iruka realized he had leaned back in Kakashi, he bolted upright. Kakashi caught him and held him by the arms. His grip was strong, but not hurtful. Iruka was so overtaken by what was happening, he didn't feel any panic. He could feel the heat from Kakashi's body pressed behind him, could smell his scent. He looked down and saw the fingers of Kakashi's left hand which was wrapped around his arm. His fingernails were long but meticulously clean. His hand was so pale. The contrast between their skin was beautiful.

Kakashi firmly turned Iruka around. Iruka was still looking down. He was still trembling. "I'm...I'm sorry, Hatake-san. I…"

"It's okay, Iruka-sensei. I didn't mean to upset you."

"I... I..." Iruka stumbled.

"I need to go"

Iruka finally looked up. His eyes were still puffy, and a tear tracked down his check. Whatever it was had shaken Iruka to his core, and Kakashi knew his questioning had taken him back to the edge. That wasn't his intention. He just wanted to know what it was all about.

As Iruka shuffled off towards his classroom, Kakashi never took his eyes off him.

He had to know what was inside of that envelope.


	3. Chapter 3

The morning wind whistled through the trees, ruffling his silver hair and he shivered slightly at the chill. Perched in a tree outside of a building, Kakashi gazed into the daylight, watching the open window of Iruka's house grimly.

He sat on there and waited, both eyes uncovered. There was no reason, really, for him to be here. He knew that, and yet he came anyway. Because, although he would never admit it, not even under Ibiki's harshest torture, he was worried about the Chūnin. But more than worried, he was curious.

He wasn't trying to put his nose in Iruka's life. But there was something bothering Iruka and, even though he didn't know why, seeing the way Iruka behaved in the other day made him even more curious about that envelope. He was really regretting not trying to open it.

As soon as Iruka left home, Kakashi entered his house by the bedroom window and went straight to Iruka's nightstand drawers. There it was, the catalog envelope.

Kakashi took a deep breath and opened it. The first thing he saw was a gift card saying:

 _Enjoy 'Ruka, you deserve this!_

Putting the card away, he turned the envelope upside-down on Iruka's bed. All the contents in the envelope fell down. Kakashi frowned. There were nothing more than pictures. Pictures of Iruka naked, hair down, with the unmistakable look of pain on his face, tears running down his face, his mouth open. There were others with the Chūnin on his hands and knees, a pale hand on one of his tights.

Kakashi got mad to notice that in one of the pictures, the same pale hand was on Iruka's neck and, for his face expression, almost choking the Chūnin, which disturbed Kakashi and caught his attention. It seemed pretty clear that it was something Iruka didn't ask for. He didn't know why, but there was something about Iruka's expression that made Kakashi know he didn't want that.

Two pictures showed Iruka pressed flat on the bed. There was a look in his face that was hard to describe. It was like he wanted to move. Iruka looked almost like he was drunk. But there was just something about that look.

In a fourth picture, Iruka was sucking off the pale guy. It didn't look like he was doing a good job, or else he didn't want that person in his mouth. Iruka had his eyes closed, but his face was cringing like he was being forced to swallow some bad medicine. Kakashi didn't realize how apt that was...

There wasn't a single picture showing the pale's guy face.

Kakashi quickly put the pictures and the gift card back in the envelope and left Iruka's house. Kakashi had done some fucked up things in his days, but this was something else! So Iruka was being blackmailed, or at least was about to be humiliated and it pissed Kakashi off, he wanted to know who was the person behind all of this.

He didn't really think about it, but he wanted to find this person and he was going to have to talk to Iruka to do that. He knew neither of those things would be easy. But did he have time?

* * *

The last rays of sunlight were disappearing beyond the horizon, through the trees. This was the time of day that Iruka loved most - loved sitting on his classroom and enjoying the sunset. This scene he had witnessed so many times seemed different now. Everything seemed different now.

Life was so uncomplicated only a few days ago. Now everything was a mess. He felt so unsure about everything, his feelings, his likes and dislikes - all the things he was certain about were now in question.

New experiences were supposed to be constructive, if not altogether positive. But the experiences of the last week or so were proving to be more corrosive than anything else. At least it felt that way now.

He knew his sexual attraction to men was real. His experience with Mizuki had burned him, and burned him badly. And now, there was Hatake Kakashi. Iruka was still figuring out what he was feeling for the Jōnin. He had mixed feelings about the Copy-nin. He was drawn to him, that much was clear. He seemed to keep appearing, in the oddest ways and at the oddest times. Iruka was afraid of him a little, that much was clear too.

Mizuki was an asshole, who was now trying hard to fuck up his life. And he seemed like such a good friend when you think about things from a distance. They'd practically grew up together. They'd lost their parents during the Kyūbi's attack; they both carried the same painful past.

Iruka always knew about this anger the white-haired man carried inside, and it had proven itself to be the controlling part of Mizuki's personality, or at least enough of a control to make him drug, rape, photograph and now extort his best friend, and whom he certainly had no reason to hate.

If Mizuki could flip a switch and turn in to the devil himself, then what reason did he have to trust Kakashi - this Jōnin that had the envelope that would ruin his life, and was playing with him a little...

Now he was starting to think.

He was experiencing the highs and lows that come from desire - from lust. The desire for what one shouldn't want, and the risk that comes from crossing that line in the sand. To be horny and confused and afraid and intrigued... It was just too much.

He had been standing on the cliff, looking over the edge for a long, long time. He wanted to go down. Mizuki had thrown him off the cliff. He would have climbed down himself, slowly, given time... probably.

Iruka was brought back to the here and now by the sound of someone entering his class.

"Hatake-san…" Iruka stammered as Kakashi entered the classroom and walked up to him. "Can I help you?"

"Hello Iruka-sensei. I need to talk to you." the Jōnin said calmly with both hands in his pockets, looking lazily at Iruka.

 _Here we go again._ The confusion and uncertainty Iruka felt just increased by a factor of ten. _What does he want to talk about?_ His mind flashed. He knew he was going to be attacked from two sides now. He didn't know Kakashi that well, except that he was great ninja. That was it. He knew Kakashi as ninja and not as a person. Was Kakashi like Mizuk? He had that envelope. Iruka was sure he'd opened it and seen those pictures. Was he going to blackmail him too like Mizuki was doing. Or something worse. Iruka felt like throwing himself off the window. This was never going to end.

He couldn't just let it hang. As bad as he wanted to just go to go home, sleep and wake up and have this all be over, he knew he had to face it. Face it as best he could. He didn't know what he was going to say, and he didn't know how much this was going to cost him, but there was no use ignoring the man. But he had to play it smart, or at least try to.

"I can't Hatake-san. I'm sorry."

Kakashi sighed softly. "Please...I just want to talk to you."

 _Fuck, he definitely saw those pictures. What else would he want to talk about?_ Iruka's palms were sweaty and he was dizzy. "Why?"

"Don't be scared. I just need to talk to you that's all."

This seemed like it was going nowhere fast. As much as Iruka knew he needed to find out what he was dealing with it, it was hard and Iruka was scared. That feeling in the pit of his stomach told him to be careful.

"Trust me, Iruka-sensei."

Iruka didn't look up at Kakashi's face. Those words made his body tremble. _Trust_. He didn't trust in anyone anymore. "Ok. Meet me outside of the Academy. In the same benches."

Kakashi nodded and disappeared in puff of smoke.

Iruka was pulled at both sides. He wanted to go, but he didn't. He wanted to meet with Kakashi who seemed determined to inject himself, this fascinating, quiet man. And at the same time he knew he would be better off if he never saw him again. He knew Kakashi could hurt him easily. He might want to blackmail him. Or he might just want to make him squirm. Iruka had no way to know. He was just supposed to trust...

* * *

Kakashi knew Iruka would come.

He didn't know Iruka, but he knew the type. He was vulnerable. Kakashi didn't want to prey on those vulnerabilities - not necessarily. But he could use that to his advantage. He had a mission now, and it blinded him from just about all that was going on around him. He was going to find out who took those pictures, and who was now threatening Iruka.

Kakashi hadn't stopped to think about why he was so pissed, he just went with the flow. Sometimes being pissed was something he was just good at...

He wasn't nervous, there was no reason to be. He just had to think. Getting the name of the attacker might not be easy. Iruka had no reason to trust him, but he needed him to. He needed a plan, and needed to make sure his talk game was on.

He took his Icha Icha and started walking towards the benches were he would wait for Iruka.

"You know, I've seen Kakashi-sama's face."

Kakashi stopped at those words. _Not another fangirl fight._ It got old a long time ago, and no matter how many times he explained the girls he really wasn't interested in a relationship, they never gave up trying. Those fangirls were truly annoying.

He'd even given up discouraging their outrageous stories about him, just so he didn't have to talk to them. And he really hated when they called him Kakashi-sama. He sighed and tried to ignore the girls.

But as soon as they spotted him they went straight to him.

Kakashi recognized one of the girl. It was Ukiyo. He'd slept with her once or twice. It was just one night stand to Kakashi, no strings. And contrary to what she claimed, he'd never showed his face to her. Ukiyo was actually not that bad. In a normal day he would have at least given her a minute of his time. But today his mind was elsewhere. He still wasn't sure what he would say to Iruka.

"Hello Kakashi-sama," the girl greeted him from afar.

Kakashi didn't answer. His nose buried in his book. He was thinking about Iruka and how to persuade the Chūnin to tell him who was the other person in the pictures.

Ukiyo seemed pissed for being ignored in front of her friends. She broke loose from her friends and walked up to Kakashi. She reached up and put a hand on his arm. She moved a little closer to him and put her other hand on his shoulder, turned her head to her friends and said, "You go home, me and Kakashi-sama have plans tonight..."

Kakashi sighed again. Ukiyo was getting really annoying. Her friends seemed jealous of her, and that's what she wanted. She had that triumphant smile on her face. "I'm sorry but, I have no plans with you." He brushed her hands off his shoulders and started to turn.

Afraid of being humiliated in front of the the other girls, Ukiyo ran back around in front of Kakashi and bent over in front of him, poking out her ass and moving slowly back like she was dancing in a club towards the edge of the stage. Kakashi noticed several people who couldn't help but watch this scene play out in public. Some commenting that not only he was a lazy Jōnin but also a pervert.

Kakashi was getting pissed and was a little embarrassed, but he was more concerned about getting to where he needed to be on time. He was only yards away. He didn't have time for this. He started to back away, but one of the crowd walking past in street caught his attention. He froze. It was Iruka.

Here Kakashi was with this girl grinding her ass on him, while her friends looked at her with envy. He was about to explode inside, and not in a sexual way. He flashed through some hand signs that Ukiyo's friends watched attentively. He touched two fingers lightly to the girl's forehead. The dark eyes became dazed before heavy lids closed and Ukiyo collapsed with a sigh.

Kakashi caught the limp body easily and settled the girl carefully in one of her friends' arms. "Please take her home." he said with a sigh. The girls nodded, looking at him with wide eyes.

Kakashi couldn't believe he had to run in to that girl now, of all times. And for her to jump all over him. Even the kinkiest women knew better than to put a man out there in public like that. He wasn't going to have sex with her ever again. And Iruka had seen it too. That pissed Kakashi off even more.

The Copy-nin marched towards the benches, which were now just around the corner. In his mind he was turning over and over what Iruka might think or say. He didn't want the Chūnin to get the wrong idea. Why did he care what a Chūnin schoolteacher think of him anyway?...

Kakashi wondered if Iruka would have left. As he was pushing away from Ukiyo he lost sight of the younger man in the crowd. He didn't think he would leave.

He turned the corner and the benches were empty. Fuck! Now he wanted to kill that girl. Her ass definitely wasn't worth the trouble she was causing him tonight. He felt his whole body getting hot and he knew he could beat someone to death soon if he didn't calm down. There was just too much at stake. He was calculating the odds that Iruka would come to meet him again after this. He doubted it, and his face was twisted in anger. When he got mad he wanted to punch something or someone, and his fists balled involuntarily as he looked around for some surface he could punch to release this rage. There was nothing that looked like it wouldn't break his hand if he hit it. With no other option, he just swung at the air as hard as he could. The force of his fake punch swung him around.

He heard the people who were passing by whispering to themselves "Crazy Jōnin..." as he finally stopped, facing the other direction, and face to face with Iruka.

Iruka was standing there, no more than five feet away, and staring.

Now Kakashi really felt like a fool, punching at the air like a _crazy Jōnin_ , and for what? And Iruka saw the whole thing. Things were not going as planned.

"Why did you want to talk to me, Hatake-san?" Iruka broke the silence. Calmly looking him in the eye.

"I jus..." Kakashi broke off. He was trying to make the words come out, but he couldn't. He was ashamed to have Iruka, a Chūnin, watching him have his little tantrum, right on the heels of the scene with Ukiyo moments earlier. He just felt like an idiot. He wasn't used to this. This was way, way out of his context, and off the track he didn't know where to go next.

"Let's sit," Iruka offered as he slowly walked past Kakashi and moved towards the benches, keeping his eyes forward even as he brushed his arm.

Kakashi felt funny being led, and he felt even funnier that his own anger had put him in this awkward spot. He walked slowly behind Iruka and sat down on the bench opposite. They were in those same spots. This was the second time.

Iruka could tell Kakashi was pissed about something, but he was sure it had nothing to do with him. Probably that gang of girls. That one was obviously grinding on him, and that must have pissed him off. _I guess he doesn't like to be humiliated in public,_ Iruka thought. _Oh well, I'm in the same boat, only mine is much, much worse_... That brought Iruka back to what he was doing there.

He had watched Kakashi from a distance as soon as he noticed him with that group of girls. Iruka decided to keep a respectful distance and watch what was happening. He hid behind a wall where he could see it all. He saw the Copy-nin storm over after performed a Jutsu on the one girl, and he followed him to the benches. He had no idea he would start yelling and look like he was going to fight. This was even weirder than he imagined it would be.

But Iruka didn't feel scared. If he had taken the time to think about it, that was odder than the rest of the other events, by far. Here was Hatake Kakashi, who obviously had some deep, deep dirt on him, and who had convinced him to meet yet again. And now he was performing jutsu at girls and throwing punches. Iruka didn't know the man that well, but people said that Kakashi was always calm. And he was dangerous when angry. And that would have been a good time to stay hidden, or to run. But Iruka wasn't afraid, and he wasn't going to run. If he wants to fight then so be it. I can hold my own, at least for a while. Iruka felt like he might as well get used to changes in his life, and this might as well be the first...So no point in putting it off, just cause this guy is over here huffing and puffing. It is his fault we are here anyway.

"So, you wanted to talk. I know you know about me, I guess from that envelope. But I'm not who you think I am. I'm not... I'm not..." Now Iruka was having trouble finding the words. Now he didn't want to talk about it anymore.

And so they just sat there.

Iruka took another long look at man before him. At first the silver-haired Jōnin was bent forward, like he was about to jump up. He was obviously tense. When he sat back he kept his hands together in his lap, but Iruka could see that he was unsettled.

For Kakashi, having Iruka sitting there so calmly, staring at him, was not making this easier. He wanted to be cool, calm and collected, like he always was. He was catching his breath and calming down. He had to be on an even footing with this Chūnin, hell he even needed to regain a bit of the upper hand. Otherwise he might not get the info he needed. And that was the whole point.

"So what do you want, Hatake-san?"

They sat there in silence. Everyone, except a few students in the Academy, were gone now, and even they would be gone soon. No one would disturb them here.

"I need you to trust me, Iruka-sensei." Kakashi said regaining his composure.

"Trust you? I don't understand."

"I need to know who it was..."

Iruka looked at him confused. "What are you talking about?"

"The pictures."

 _Well that settles_ it. Kakashi saw it. Iruka could feel that sinking feeling coming back. "I... I... Um..."

"Iruka-sensei, who was it?"

"Why? Uh, why do want to know, Hatake-san?"

Kakashi could see that Iruka was getting more and more agitated. "Please call me Kakashi."

"Look, ok, I just don't... Kakashi-san I just don't know what to say."

"You just have give me his name."

"Why would I-"

Kakashi cut him off. "I jus need to know who did that to you."

Iruka sat there, his mind racing again. This didn't make sense. Kakashi had seen the photographs, the card... But now he just wanted to know the name of the person he was with... "Look, Kakashi-san..." He caught his breath. "I know what you must be thinking. But... I don't... That was not what it looked like."

"I know what it was." Kakashi frowned. He was deadly serious now. The panic and huffing from earlier was gone, and he was cold as steel.

"I don't do that kind of thing, never." Iruka looked down.

Kakashi knew it was deeper than that. He stopped looking him in the eye - that was the best sign. "How did you guys meet?"

Iruka hesitated a little but answered "He... he is my best friend. I know him since were kids."

"How many times he did this to you before?"

That brought Iruka back to reality fast. Kakashi thought he and Mizuki were regular lovers. He realized saying they were childhood friends didn't give the whole story, and because of that Kakashi could be making all the wrong assumptions and conclusions. But the whole story? He couldn't. Why the hell would he anyway?

"Look, I told you it was not what it looked like, that night was the first... was my first..." Iruka looked down again. What a fucked up thing to be talking about to a stranger.

"First? That was your first?" Kakashi saw red. He felt raw and white-hot anger cloud his senses.

"I didn't know. I went there... We had met earlier that night and I went to his place to see him again."

"Why?"

Iruka paused. He knew why, but he didn't want to say it. Now might be a good time to start spinning this a little, what would it matter. He wasn't about to confess his soul to Kakashi... "I just needed to see him."

"And he fucked you and took pictures of it...?" Kakashi was bold this time. He saw Iruka wincing at his words but didn't care. He was mad, mad at Iruka for being so naïve and mad at that man for doing what he did.

"I didn't know he was taking pictures."

"How could you not know. Did you go back there to sleep with him?"

"No, I went there to... I wanted to see him. He is... He is my best friend. We'd messed around a little before, not sex, I didn't know he..." Iruka stood up and paced a little in front of the bench. Kakashi followed him with his eye. "I didn't know it was gonna happen like that..."

Iruka's head was hanging low.

"Look, Iruka-sensei, just tell me who it was. I can tell you didn't want it like that."

"That's not true..." Iruka blurted out.

Kakashi frowned. "You did want it to happen like that?" his indignation was clear in his voice.

"No. I... I..." Iruka was numb. The tears were welling up in his eyes now. This was dredging up a lot of thoughts from that night and the nights that followed. He hadn't even gotten to the feelings seeing that envelope and the photos brought forward.

Kakashi saw the tear roll down the tanned check, and he felt his head and neck getting hot. The blood was racing through him again. He didn't know what happened that night, but he knew one thing, Iruka didn't know it was being photographed and didn't know it was going to be thrown back in his face. He didn't realize that Iruka was worried about him doing the same thing...

"I did want to do it with him, but not like that and... I didn't want my whole life blown to shit because I fucked up and trusted the wrong person, I wanted to..." Iruka was crying now, and his voice was broken. "I didn't have a choice..." That got Kakashi's attention." He drugged me. I don't know, I couldn't stop him... As much as I fought, my body didn't obey me…"

Now it was Kakashi who felt that sinking feeling. Like he was fighting against Gai and just couldn't dodge his punches and kicks. _Drugged? He was fucking raped? Oh fuck_... "He raped you?"

Iruka sighed. He knew Mizuki for too long. It was still hard to believe that his best friend would do such a thing. Maybe all that happened was his fault. "I went there knowing something was going to happen?"

"Did you say yes?"

"No."

"Did you say NO?" Now Kakashi's voice was raised. His face was angry.

"No. I couldn't, I couldn't move or speak clearly, and he..."

God this was fucked up. Whoever did this to Iruka was trash. To fuck up someone's life for what? "What does he want?"

"I don't know."

"We should report this to the Hokage..."

"No... Please.." Iruka almost yelled. "I don't want the Hokage to know about this. I don't want anyone to know about this. I might lose my job at the Academy... My life is already fucked up... I can't lose this job, it's all I have now... Please don't say anything to him... I don't want the Hokage to know that I like...you know... men..."

Kakashi sighed. He'd heard enough. It was worse than he thought. He jumped up from the bench and walked right up to Iruka. The tanned man cringed and pulled back a little, thinking he was about to get jumped. Kakashi put his hands on Iruka's and squeezed his arms a little. Not hard enough to scare him, but enough to make it clear that he was there and he was serious.

"Look, Iruka-sensei, you have to tell me who it was."

"Why?" Iruka said through his sobs... "You will tell the Hokage…"

"No I won't. You've got to trust me..."

"But why? I don't get it, what the hell is going on..." Iruka cried harder now, none of this made sense and Kakashi was demanding more and more information. What good would it do to tell him? Kakashi was a very skilled Jōnin, and there were rumors about him being an ANBU, and Mizuki was just a Chūnin. Would Kakashi hurt Mizuki? Why did Kakashi care anyway?

"Tell me, Iruka." This time Kakashi was soft, and he spoke with his face only inches from Iruka. Calling him just Iruka without adding '-sensei' just made him sound more sincere, like he was a friend. "Tell me."

"Mizuki."

"Mizuki?"

"Yeah, Mizuki. He is a Chūnin. He's just..."

Kakashi knew who Mizuki was. He was sure he'd heard Genma saying something about him. "I'm make it up to you, Iruka."

"What? Kakashi-san..."

"Look, don't worry about anything. I got you Iruka . That guy won't hurt you, and he won't cause more trouble."

"But..."

"You have to trust me, Iruka. Do you trust me?" Iruka didn't say anything, he just stood there. "Hey, do you trust me, Iruka?" Iruka just nodded his head. Kakashi was going to show him. He made a promise to Iruka and nothing was going to stand in his way. "I have to go now." He looked at Iruka and the Chūnin looked back at him. His eyes were swollen and his face was still wet with tears. The anger Kakashi felt earlier was gone. He was still mad, and he still had a job to do, but he didn't want to upset Iruka anymore, no more noise, no more questions. "I'll contact you later, ok?"

"OK"

"Let's go."

Kakashi led Iruka away from the benches by the arm, not in an embrace, but like you might help lead a friend who was having trouble finding his way.

When they arrive at Iruka's house they stopped, and Kakashi dropped his hand. He looked at Iruka one last time. "I've got you Iruka, don't worry..." He turned and walked away. He didn't want to leave, but there was no time to waste.

Iruka was still worried, but he wasn't worried about Kakashi or himself. He was worried about Mizuki. What would Kakashi do?

He watched the Copy-nin as he walked off in to the night, hair blowing up from the light wind and he was standing so straight, shoulders back, totally unafraid of what might be ahead of him.

 _What the hell just happened?_ Iruka was exhausted and confused.

He knew he would be seeing Kakashi again soon, trust or not.


	4. Chapter 4

Walking home from school was usually time spent unwinding for Iruka, but today he was just panicking. He'd just found out that his main problem, Mizuki, was going to be a teacher in the Academy. He'd tried so hard to avoid the white-haired man, but now he was being forced to see him everyday. And he still didn't know what Mizuki wanted from him with those pictures.

And what was it about Kakashi? Iruka couldn't figure him out. He had only talked with the Jōnin a few times, and already they were so intertwined it was making Iruka's head spin.

Kakashi seemed genuinely concerned. Buy why? He didn't have an explanation, and the Jōnin wasn't offering one. What was the Copy-nin going to do? He had no dog in this fight, at least none that Iruka could find. But he wanted to know Mizuki's name. In the village Mizuki wouldn't be hard to find. He was the only Chūnin with that name.

But still...

Was he going to stop what was happening? If so, how? Kakashi could make it worse. Iruka knew Mizuki very well. He could be only a Chūnin, but he wasn't the kind to bow under pressure. In a fight Iruka would put money on Kakashi without thinking twice, but Mizuki was no lightweight either. He had resources and had obviously planned all this in great detail, those pictures were evidence of that... If Kakashi tried anything, Mizuki might release it to everyone without Iruka even having a chance to give him whatever it was he wanted... Kakashi didn't know what he was getting into. How could he? And his interest still didn't make sense. There were too much at stake.

"Iruka-sensei,"

Iruka spun around, taking in the man who addressed him. Feathery strands of dark hair fanned out like a peacock's tail, the fringes spilling over his hitae-ate to frame his eyes. He wore a bandage over his cheeks and nose that crinkled when he smiled, and there was a wide marking that covered the space of his chin.

"Yes," Iruka answered, "…Can I help you...?"

"Hagane Kotetsu," said the ninja, giving Iruka a slight bow. "The Hokage sent me to give you this." Kotetsu handed him a scroll, and Iruka took it with a questioning look. "starting tomorrow you'll take on a new group of students. In this scroll are the names of all the children you'll teach and who will need a little extra help in their studies."

Iruka sighed as he opened the scroll and read the names. He didn't understand why would the Hokage wanted to give him a new group of students to teach. He was doing fine with the one he had now.

All the students in the list seemed to have some kind of special home situations. There were some living in a single-parent family, and others were orphans living with their grandparents or alone. There was a particular name in the list that made Iruka's heart jump. "I can't… I can't teach Uzumaki Naruto..."

"I know," Kotetsu said, as if guessing that that would coming. "but the other teachers also refused to teach the kid..."

"What about you?"

"I'm sorry Iruka-sensei, I'm not a teacher. I'm a proctor for the genin exams," Kotetsu said with a shudder. "I can't teach these brats on a daily basis." He chuckled. "Besides, it was a direct order from the Hokage. He thinks you can be the person that Naruto needs."

Kotetsu smiled at Iruka but Iruka didn't smile back. He really needed to talk with the Hokage. There was no way in hell he was going to teach the Kyūbi's vessel. Did Sarutobi forget about his parents' death and how much he suffered because of it. He wasn't going to be that kid's teacher, no matter what the Hokage said. Iruka had already too much problems to deal with.

* * *

Once he was alone Kakashi let the rage flow back through him. That was some fucked up thing, and for no reason. At least no reason he was aware of... Kakashi kinda knew his thoughts were clouded, not just by rage, but by something that drew him to Iruka. He hadn't really put much thought it in, and if he had, he probably wouldn't have believed it. Right now he wanted to get revenge. Not for himself, but for Iruka. The why was something for another day...

As he made is way up to his apartment, Kakashi found a small paper by his door. It was a message from Iruka. The tanned ninja wanted to meet with him again. In the paper was the name of a restaurant and the subject of the meeting: Mizuki.

Kakashi had asked Genma to find out everything there was to know about Mizuki. The Special Jōnin owed him favors. Kakashi knew that he could even do it for free if he explained the circumstances, but he decided not to. He'd promised Iruka he wouldn't tell it anyone, and Kakashi wasn't the kind of person who would break his promises.

He didn't have to find Genma, he was already waiting inside his apartment. Genma spoke quickly as Kakashi shut the door. "I couldn't find anything that we already know on Mizuki,"

It took Kakashi a second to digest that statement. There couldn't nothing. Kakashi's fingers curled around the hilt of a kunai. "Fuck."

"Are you going to tell me what's going on or not?" Genma said with a frown.

Kakashi shook his head. "I can't, but I need you to trust me and help me with something."

Genma sighed. "Ok, I'm in."

* * *

Kakashi was late, he knew it. He walked up the restaurant, looking around the whole time. As Iruka said the place was almost empty. The Chūnin had reserved a private room for them. Kakashi thought it wasn't necessary, but the Chūnin wanted privacy. They certainly had that.

He entered the room and found Iruka sitting on the single table there, looking outside through the opened shōji door that led into beautiful garden with a large lake.

Kakashi couldn't help but to smile under the mask as he saw Iruka sitting there drinking tea, staring out at the dark lake, and didn't even hearing him until he was right behind the Chūnin.

With a shock, Iruka turned around. He blushed in embarrassment for being, once again, caught so distracted. He was wearing the same cologne he had noticed Kakashi was wearing each time they met, one of the Burberry fragrances that had been out for a while. Iruka had to dig around in his closet for the bottle, long ago put away with so many others...

As he walked up, Kakashi recognized the scent. Interesting. He took a seat and smiled apologetically. "Sorry for being late."

"Oh, it's okay. I didn't wait long. I arrived late too and I thought I would find you here already." Iruka lied. He'd arrived on time actually, and waited 1 hour for the Jōnin. Iruka took another slip of tea and smiled nervously at the Jōnin. "Would you like some, Kakashi-san?"

"No, I don't like chamomile. I prefer spearmint." Iruka was about to call the waitress to ask her to bring spearmint tea for Kakashi, but the Jōnin quickly cut him off. "Don't bother Iruka-sensei. I don't want any tea. Don't feel like drinking it on such warm night."

Iruka nodded again. There was an awkward but somewhat comforting silence. It was becoming a contest between them, each time they met. Who was going to speak first. Iruka had called this meeting, and he knew he needed to get going. He was going to need his rest. This day had already drained so much out of him.

He wasn't sure where to start exactly, but he was already feeling a little bit more comfortable. He had been worried about Kakashi's involvement, worried that he might make things worse. But now that the Jōnin was there, now that he was sitting there across him, the worries didn't seem to eat at him quite as much.

Iruka looked over and studied Kakashi's body, starting from his feet and working his way up to his silver hair. Kakashi's single exposed eye caught Iruka looking, and the tanned man blushed as he turned his face away.

Iruka liked Kakashi's scent. It wasn't just cologne, it was more like fresh leaves mixed with the cologne. It was comforting, in a way he hadn't noticed before.

"Thanks for meeting me, Hatake-san."

"No problem, Iruka-sensei."

Iruka couldn't help but to laugh a little. "Why do you call me 'sensei'? No one outside of the Academy calls me that."

"It's because you're a teacher, and you blushed the first time I called you that." Kakashi laughed a little himself. He wasn't sure why he said that and why he laughed.

Iruka could feel his face getting red. "You...you can call me Iruka. Don't need to be so formal. I'm younger than you after all."

"Whatever you say, but I like to call you sensei." They were both smiling now.

"You act like you know me. We just met."

"I don't know. Are you mad?"

"No."

Enough of the small talk. Iruka liked chatting with Kakashi, but there was something more important to talk about. "Kakashi-san, why did you want to know Mizuki's name?"

"I don't know, I just wanted to know who did that to you."

"You know I didn't know it was being photographed?"

"Yeah."

"I would never have gone over there if I had known he was going to photograph it, Kami knows. I trusted him, I just wanted him to..." It was awkward. Iruka didn't know if either of them wanted to hear what he needed to say...

But Kakashi could tell what was coming. He sensed the awkwardness, and he jumped in to help... "You had met with him earlier that night?"

"Yeah."

"So why did you go to his place again?"

Iruka took a deep breath before speaking. "I don't know. I need someone to talk to. He is…he is my best friend. That night the Hokage had talked to me about stop taking missions and starting teaching."

Kakashi frowned. "Why did the Hokage tell you to stop taking missions? What happened?"

"I screwed up," Iruka took another deep breath. "My team was assigned for a simple B-ranked mission. One of the enemies was just 13 years old. I just couldn't kill him… he was a child... and I… I let him escape... The Hokage thought it was better for me to just stay in the village. Those who can't do, teach, he said."

"So because of that you went to Mizuki's house. To talk." Iruka nodded slowly. "Do you know why he did that?"

"No.."

"No grudges, or something that happened in the past and now he wants revenge?"

"No, not that I know of."

"So what does he want?"

"I don't know." Iruka had been worrying over that same question since he opened that envelope. Mizuki wanted something. God only knows what.

Kakashi knew he needed more. He might as well ask. So much was already out there. "What happened?"

"You mean that night?"

"Well, yeah, but before that too."

"I told you already. We met a little before that night. I talked to him... and..." Iruka looked down.

"Look, Iruka-sensei, don't worry, you can trust me."

"I just don't understand, Kakashi-san. Why do you want to know all this? I don't mean to be rude, and I don't want to offend you, but what's it to you?"

Kakashi sighed loudly. "To be honest, I don't know. When I saw those pictures, it was..." Now it was Kakashi who was having trouble speaking...

"It couldn't have been about Mizuki, you didn't even know it was him. Was it about that night I bumped into Shiranui-san, or the envelope?"

"No, sensei... When I saw those pictures, when I saw him doing that to you, I knew it was something wrong. That look in your eyes, I knew it wasn't supposed to go like that..."

"That's kinda what I wanted to talk to you about."

Kakashi raised one silver eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"The pictures. It wasn't really what it looked like."

"It looked like you were getting raped. There were tears. And those words he wrote on the gift card."

"Yeah, but it wasn't rape. I had gone there. I didn't stop him."

"You were fucking drugged, you told me already." Kakashi was getting heated. How was Iruka defending that guy?

"Yeah, it was all fucked up, the whole thing. He did drug me and I couldn't stop him. But..." How to say this without sounding worse... "But, I went there to be with him, Kakashi-san. I knew something was going to happen."

"Why?"

"I can't answer that, I don't know. We had messed around before. I had never done anything like that before, with a guy."

"Why him?"

"Like I had said before, he is my best friend."

"Did you want him to do that to you? Did you ask him to do that to you?" Kakashi's voice was dangerously low. Why was he so mad, he didn't know.

Iruka was embarrassed. "Yeah... I mean no… I mean, I hadn't done anything like that before, I didn't really know what was going to happen. I knew something was going to happen, I wanted something to happen, but not like that... I tried to stop it but it's not like I had a... not like I had a choice after it started."

Kakashi stood up and sat next to Iruka. As he did he brushed Iruka's arm with his, a little closer. They both stayed still. Iruka could tell he was deep in thought. "Iruka-sensei, If Mizuki hadn't drugged you, would you have sex with him?"

Iruka didn't know how to respond. It was a blunt question. Only a blunt answer would do. "Yes."

Kakashi realized it wasn't rape, not exactly. But it was still bad. Mizuki had taken advantage of Iruka, and now was threatening to make some kind of mess. Kakashi could stop him.

"I can help you, Iruka-sensei."

"No, I don't want you to get involved, Kakashi-san. He can send those pictures to everyone I know. If you do anything. If you... It's too risky. I'm afraid to do anything myself."

"But if you sit here and do nothing he could fuck you over anyway."

"I know."

"But you don't want me to do anything to stop him."

"No, please Kakashi-san." Iruka said this as he put his hand on Kakashi's arm. His skin was hot to the touch. Iruka left his hand there. It was important that the Jōnin listened and understood. There was too much at stake for this to blow up any further. "Please, Kakashi-san, I can't risk it. I have to take my chances. If it's money he wants I'll find a way. If he wants something else..."

"You're going to have sex with him again?" Kakashi looked at Iruka like he was crazy.

"What choice do I have?" Iruka looked like shit now, and his voice was barely a whisper.

Kakashi knew what choice there was to make. He had made his mind up already. He was going to protect this guy, take care of the business because he couldn't. It was the least he could do. He wanted to protect him. Why? He didn't know. The thought that more harm would come from this Mizuki. It wasn't going happen. "Okay, I won't do anything. But if you need any help, just come to me. Ok?"

"OK."

"If all hell breaks lose, just call me, I'm going to take care of it."

"Thanks. But you're defending me and you don't even know me. I mean, I appreciate it, I really do. But why are you doing this?"

Kakashi didn't even know the answer for that question. He was asking himself the same, over and over. "Because I can. I just felt like you needed a... like you needed a friend."

"Thanks, Kakashi-san."

"I got you, Iruka-sensei."

"I guess I need to go home. It's late. I have work tomorrow."

"Yeah. You're right."

Iruka stood up and left the restaurant. Kakashi followed. The Jōnin put one hand on his shoulder, just let it rest there, as he said goodnight.

Iruka turned and walked off into the darkness. Kakashi followed him at a distance, being quiet and making sure that he couldn't be seen. He made sure Iruka made his way from the restaurant to his apartment safely. He stood there, behind a tree, watching until he saw a light come on upstairs. Iruka was safe now.

Some promises are made to be broken. Kakashi jutsu'ed himself into his apartment and quickly changed into his ANBU attire.

There was no time to waste.

* * *

Mizuki was feeling himself.

Even he knew he was a cocky bastard. But he felt that way with good reason. He loved power. He loved to win. Hell, he didn't just want to win, he wanted to destroy. He wasn't just an alpha asshole, he was an alpha sadist. He didn't just like power, he liked using it. Using it to hurt.

There are lots of crazy people in the world. Mizuki may not be unique, but he was certainly special. And there are lots of dominant guys in the world. Mizuki wasn't just dominant - he was mean. Mean at his core.

Some men get off on dominating others. They get a sexual fulfillment from forcing others to submit. It can be mild or wild. It can be men or women. Sometimes it can be both. For some really fucked up people, domination sex has nothing to do with sex at all. It's just a means to an end.

Mizuki didn't get off in dominating. He didn't get off on having someone submit. It wasn't the kinky role play thing that got the white-haired Chūnin going. He used sex, and power, as a way to impact others. The thrill wasn't from the sex, it was from the before and the after. And the aftermath.

It wasn't about sex, it was about fucking people over. He liked messing with people's minds and exercising power to change their path in life.

 _Umino Iruka._

Mizuki hated him more than anything. Even though he'd lost his parents in the same way as Iruka, even though he'd been a good student, always obeying his sensei and even though he'd never caused any trouble to anyone… The Hokage had chosen Iruka and treated him like a son.

Mizuki couldn't understand why. Iruka was a prankster with no respect for the elders and the Hokage himself... He would cause trouble to everyone in the village just to call attention. But life treated him well.

While Mizuki had to share his food and clothes with the little monsters in the orphanage, the Hokage would take Iruka to eat at the ramen stand and buy him new clothes.

Mizuki had to watch from afar, Iruka growing up, stopping being a prankster and becoming Sarutobi's right arm. So many times Mizuki would find Iruka in the Hokage's tower carrying scrolls and message from and to the Hokage. And most of those scrolls contained secrets and powerful techniques. Iruka never once thought about opening and read them. The tanned ninja was too damm honest, and that really pissed Mizuki off.

The Hokage trusted him, everyone in the village trusted him. Iruka made friends, lots of them. Even after failing a mission, people still loved him.

But what Mizuki hated the most was how Iruka would still call him best friend and come to him and tell him about his pristine life.

Mizuki hated Iruka, he hated the village and most of all he hated his job. He could be a Jōnin, but because of one simple mistake he was now stuck in being a Chūnin schoolteacher. But at least he's got to see Iruka's panicked face everyday.

He was glad. He had Iruka on the palm of his hands. _Poor little Chūnin, unworried Iruka. Well, he is worried now. He has a good reason to be._

Mizuki had noticed Iruka didn't like girls when they were only 15. He could ruin Iruka's life back then by humiliating him in front of the other kids. But no, Mizuki didn't want that. If he had done that, soon people would forget about it, and the Hokage would protect him, like he always did. Mizuki wanted to leave deep scars in the Chūnin's life. Ones that he would never forget.

One day he would have power and leave the village, but before he had to make sure Iruka would never be able to show his face in public again.

Mizuki knew he could really push Iruka. He might push him too far. He wasn't worried about the result, and he wasn't sure where to go with this one. He had done this so many times, but each time was so invigorating. He had options. He had power to control people's lives by blackmail them. He was starting to get hard thinking about the panic in Iruka's head when he saw those pictures he took. Harder than it had been when he fucked him bloody in this very bed.

Mizuki laid there, rubbing his bare pale belly and thinking of his place in the world. He had come a long way from getting punked in the orphanage. From being slapped around by the other kids. Now he was doing the punking... Now he was doing the slapping.

He was drifting off to sleep, content with how things were progressing. This was gonna be fun.

He never saw the three ninjas approaching his house. He was already dreaming.


	5. Chapter 5

Kakashi, his kōhai Yamato and Genma were heading to Mizuki's house. They were all dressed in their ANBU attire. It was a dark night, but they didn't have far to go.

Mizuki was easy to find. It took about 2 minutes for Kakashi to get his address. They had their plan. They each knew their role. Kakashi was leading. He called the shots. Genma was the brute force. He might be needed to run interference if there was trouble. Yamato was keeping a look out, and he was going to make sure they got out of there in a hurry.

Mizuki was going learn a lesson.

"Ok, you know the plan, right?" Kakashi asked one last time.

"Yeah." Genma didn't need to be spoon-fed. This wasn't complicated. Kakashi was too worried. It wasn't like him. In the back of his mind, this gnawed at Genma. He couldn't shake the feeling. There was something about this 'mission' that didn't quite fit.

"Alright," Kakashi said. "Let's do this. And stay quiet."

Kakashi was committed.

The three ANBU were like shadows, jumping from roof to roof silently. But suddenly Kakashi felt a sudden compulsion to stop. Having survived ANBU for so long only because he had trusted his instincts he paused in his stride. He backed away deliberately, swinging his arm to motion the guys back.

After backing into Genma, he turned and whispered, over and over in an insistent tone. "Mask your chakra!"

"What's wrong?" Genma asked, wondering what in the hell was happening.

"shhhh…don't speak so loud. Look." Kakashi whispered. "Ibiki is there,"

"Ibiki?" the Special Jōnin couldn't believe it.

"Yes. And he is with Bear and Tiger." Kakashi was confused. And surprised. What on earth Ibiki was doing at Mizuki's apartment.

"Well, let's go back before they notice us," Genma urged and the Copy-nin agreed.

They went back to Kakashi's apartment but didn't entered. They stayed on the roof.

"I have to go back and see what the deal is," Kakashi said.

"Back? No way. Not with Ibiki there, Kakashi-senpai." Yamato finally voiced his opinion.

"If you want to go home, you can go. But I'm going back."

"Why?" Genma was generally amazed.

"I need to know what Mizuki did. See what Ibiki is doing there," replied Kakashi.

"What's wrong with you? You'll just get yourself into trouble?" Genma really thought his friend was nuts.

"Don't worry. I just want to see what's going on."

Both Genma and Yamato got quiet for long minutes.

"I'm sorry Kakashi-senpai, but I have a mission tomorrow morning...I can't help you more than this," said Yamato.

Kakashi understood. "It's okay Tenzō. Thank you anyway."

Yamato nodded and disappeared in puff of smoke, which was followed by a few seconds of silence and Kakashi was ready to go. "Are you going home or not?"

"What are you going to do?" Genma asked.

"Well, I'm just going to get as close as I can and see what I can see or hear," Kakashi told him.

"But Ibiki..." Genma didn't trust the Copy-nin anymore. He wasn't thinking straight. What was so important about this Mizuki guy that was making Kakashi acting like this. You don't take personal missions without warning Ibiki or the Hokage. Kakashi had never done this. He wasn't the kind to break the rules. But now...

"I told you not to worry. Ibiki won't see me."

Genma was really worried about his friend. Ibiki and more two ANBU being there amped this up too much. They still needed to back away, but for some reason Kakashi was determined to go. "Alright. Let's go."

"Go where?" Kakashi asked.

"I'm going with you."

Kakashi spun to look at his friend. "No, don't need. You've done enough." He didn't want his friend getting into trouble in case they were caught.

"I'm not going to let you go by yourself." The Special Jōnin was still a little worried about his friend. That seed of worry in the back of his mind had grown.

"Are you sure?" Kakashi asked.

"Yep" was Genma's response.

Kakashi wanted to go by himself, but now he didn't know how to brush Genma off. He'd agreed to go with him for what could have turned out as some complicated situation. A little reconnaissance seemed like small potatoes in comparison. To insist he leave now wouldn't make sense.

They went back towards Mizuki's house. Genma wasn't the only one worried that night. Kakashi's head was buzzing too.

* * *

Iruka laid there wondering.

His life was turning into a mess. The Hokage had refused changing Uzumaki Naruto to another class. Kakashi hadn't given any news yet. Mizuki still didn't say what he wanted.

Everything was so confusing now.

He didn't know what to feel. It was all mixed up. Apprehension. Nervousness. And... There was something else, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it. He couldn't give it a name. His mind was spinning. Up was down and down was up.

Uzumaki Naruto, the Kyūbi's vessel was going to be one of his students. Mizuki wanted to destroy him. Kakashi wanted to avenge him.

He didn't know Naruto. He wasn't sure how he was going to teach that kid without looking at him and remembering his parents' death. He didn't know Kakashi either. But he knew Mizuki too well. He didn't know what to think.

He barely remembered a simpler time. When his life seemed uncomplicated. When his path was uncluttered. Now he was feeling things that didn't make any sense. Feelings that didn't fit in his world.

He didn't have these feeling even a week ago or so ago. It was all happening so quickly.

Hatake Kakashi. That silver-haired Jōnin who was all up in his business. He was angry. And then he wasn't. He was uncaring, and then he seemed to care. He was quiet, but seemed like he had so much to say. And he was everywhere. And he was available. He responded to Iruka when he was in need. He was...

Oh, never mind...

Mizuki. Saying that name in his mind gave Iruka a shudder. He thought about that nasty, threatening envelope... He had been his best friend, the person Iruka would always go to when he needed. He made Iruka feel things he never felt before. There was a... a draw to him. Iruka hated him, though. He thought about the pictures. He told himself he hated him. He was a threat... But he was also the person who had been there for him when no-one else cared.

It didn't make sense. Why would Mizuki do this to him?

Iruka realized he was just scared. When he looked at all the things happening he was just plain scared. He couldn't talk to his friends about this. He certainly couldn't talk to the Hokage. It wasn't only dangerous, it was embarrassing. He wasn't just in trouble, he was exposed. There was no way he could come clean without revealing WAY too much about himself - the kind of stuff he didn't know about himself, and the kinds of things that others wouldn't understand.

How would he explain the pictures. Sure, there were parts that made him look like a victim, but there were bound to be parts that weren't so clear. Even if he had been drugged and raped against his will, he was still naked in Mizuki's bedroom. He was a ninja, he was trained to escape from situations like that one. Anyone who saw the very first pictures would know he was enjoying the first minutes of the sex. That was something even Iruka wasn't comfortable with himself.

What would Mizuki say to the Hokage? Would he say that was Iruka who had approached him? Would he reveal their conversations about Iruka being confused about his sexualliy? Would he lie? Hell yeah, he would lie.

Everything pointed to one outcome. Iruka was there by choice. What happened to him was his choice.

Iruka shuddered again.

He had been attracted to Mizuki. There was an edge to him that Iruka couldn't explain. Mizuki was confident. He was charming, but he wasn't the least bit feminine or weak. He had been strong the whole time. He went down on Iruka but Iruka didn't think of him as a girl. He had been a man the whole time. Masculine. And then mean. That's right, a mean asshole rapist.

Iruka jumped out of bed and went to the kitchen. He prepared tea and went back to his bedroom. He sat on his balcony. Drinking tea just seemed like the right thing to do. It seemed like the first step in calming his mind.

It was spearmint tea. Kakashi's favorite. Why he had chosen that flavor he didn't know. He hate spearmint. But now it felt delicious. It reminded him of the last time they talked. It seemed like a million years ago.

He took a split in the warm nighttime air and just sat there. The tea was really taking his mind to Kakashi.. He remembered how his hand looked the day that the Jōnin gave him back the envelope. He remembered his cologne. He remembered the blank lazily expression that wouldn't look away. He remembered brushing against him. And he remembered their revealing conversation earlier tonight.

Kakashi had asked him questions about things he wouldn't have told his closest friends. The Copy-nin had asked and Iruka had answered. He didn't want to hold back. What was the point anyway. Kakashi knew his darkest secret already. What was the point of hiding anything?

But he hadn't been totally honest, Iruka realized. He had stopped short of blurting out all the things on his mind. Some of the things that only really dawned on Iruka while he was being questioned by Kakashi. Some of the things that Iruka wasn't really comfortable with himself.

He left the tea cup on the balcony and laid on the bed again. He just couldn't relax his mind.

After checking his mail, he noticed an envelope he hadn't seen earlier. As soon as he saw the address Iruka felt his stomach drop.

It was from Mizuki.

Iruka swallowed hard. All the fear and anxiety came rushing back. Without thinking he opened the envelope. It contained a simple card. As he took it to read he thought, _might as well get it over with..._

The message read, simply:

 _"I saw you today at the Academy. You thought I had forgotten about you? Are you wondering what's next? Don't worry I'll tell you. Tomorrow morning, after your classes, meet me in the teachers lounge. And you better show up."_

Iruka laid back. _Fuck_... What was he going to do? He didn't want to meet with Mizuki. Stringing him along. It was torture.

He opened the first envelope Mizuki had sent to him. The one with the pictures and the the threat. It was the first time he had looked at it since the night it arrived. It was all the worst stuff. Or was it? Iruka couldn't really remember it all. This seemed like a lot of bad stuff. That look on his face and from so many angles. He looked... _Fuck_. It was too much.

Iruka took both envelopes and ripped it. Feeling a single tear run down his cheek, he turned over and buried his face under a pillow and prayed that sleep would come.

* * *

Two full blocks away, on a secluded dark street, Kakashi put his Hound's mask on and masked his chakra. With Ibiki in the scene, he needed to be careful. He and Genma jumped from roof to roof slowly, but deliberately, towards Mizuki's house. They kept in the shadows as much as they could.

It was so dark that, in their dark ANBU attire they could walk right in front of your house and you still might not see them. No moon. A perfect night for surveillance. Kakashi felt lucky.

As they got closer, they slowed their pace. The final approach needed to be perfect.

"Hey, Genma, let's cut through the yard next door." Kakashi instructed.

"Ok," The Special Jōnin agreed.

"And be quiet." Kakashi added.

Genma rolled his eyes. He didn't need Kakashi to tell him what do. He knew damn well what to do. Not only because he was a ninja, but also because if Ibiki caught them, they would be in big trouble. "Can you chill?" he said irritated. "You're telling me to be quiet, but you're the one who's going to you fuck this up if you don't shut up…"

"Maa, I just want to make sure we don't get caught up," was Kakashi's very calm response.

Genma realized it was no use arguing. Kakashi didn't seem to be aware of how oddly he was behaving. He wasn't even mad for the way Genma had talked to him. Something was really off. This whole personal late night "mission" was off. Why Kakashi wanted to know about Mizuki and why Ibiki was at the Chūnin's house? Genma was curious but he also was there to keep an eye on his friend. This didn't excite him at all. He couldn't figure out why it was so important to go back. What did Kakashi hope to see or find out? To the Special Jōnin, this was a pointless risk. But he wasn't going to abandon his friend. He didn't feel good about this. But he would have felt worse letting Kakashi go alone. Sometimes friendships put you in so much trouble... he thought.

One house a way, they ducked down and cut across the neighbor's yard. The neighbor's shrubbery gave them the perfect covert approach. Ibiki and the two ANBU were still there. Not too late, thought Kakashi. He felt like his luck was holding out.

The duo crept to the edge of Mizuki's property and crouched down to plan their next move. There was nothing to see on the side of the house, so they decided a full frontal attack was their best option. They slowly and carefully moved across the entryway. The front windows were alit, but as they crept forward they realized they couldn't see anything. There were blinds or curtains. They practically crawled towards the brightest window, both hoping they might at least be able to hear something if they couldn't see. But they didn't hear a peep.

"Round back?" Kakashi asked.

"Yeah," Genma responded, wishing this was over, but knowing they had to keep trying if he was ever going to get the silver-haired Jōnin away.

They retraced their steps to the side of the house and started towards the back. They were confronted by pitch darkness, and the best path to the rear of the house wasn't clear. Now wasn't the time to trip, so they made their way at a snail's pace. Kakashi was determined, but he wasn't a fool. He knew he couldn't use any technique or even the Sharingan to see in the dark. If he did it, he'd be denouncing their presence. His only way out was using his ninja skills and trying to guess where the things were.

As they finally made their way towards the back it looked like another dead end. They didn't see any lights and couldn't hear a thing. Undaunted, Kakashi crept along the back with Genma right on his heels. They walked past a darkened window and were about to keep going when the Copy-nin felt Genma tug from behind.

"Listen," whispered the Special Jōnin.

They crouched down and crept forward. Although the room on the other side of the window was dark, the room beyond was lit. With their faces practically pressed against the glass, they could see figures in the room beyond. They could also hear a raised voice. The two ANBU, Bear and Tiger, were standing. From their body language and swinging arms it was clear the raised voice they could hear were coming from Ibiki. They couldn't tell what was being said, but whoever was on the receiving end was getting a stern talking to...

Then Kakashi saw Ibiki. The large man was holding something in his hand and kept holding it up and shaking it while he talked. It looked like a sign or piece of paper. It was clear they were referring to the object and wanted someone to pay attention. Kakashi wanted to know what it was he was holding, but from where they were it was impossible to tell. Kakashi assumed it was Mizuki getting chewed out by the Ibiki. But he couldn't see him. It was driving the Jōnin crazy not to know.

"Bullshit," they heard from inside.

It was getting even more heated. Both Bear and Tiger disappeared from view. There was maybe half an excruciating minute where they couldn't see or hear a thing. Genma was ready to go. Kakashi began thinking of how he could get in the house.

"Let's go," Genma said, tapping Kakashi on the arm.

Kakashi kept his face to the window. He wasn't ready to leave. Genma was about to unload on his friend when he saw Kakashi focus again on the inside of the house.

"Look!" Kakashi urged.

They saw Ibiki and another man. As one of the ANBU stepped away it was clear the other man had his hands behind him. Both of them knew the other guy had to be Mizuki for the white hair and pale skin. And they both also knew from the way his hands were pulled behind him that he was in handcuffs.

"What the hell?" Genma whispered. Kakashi backed away from the window and started to walk away. "Where are you going?" this time Genma whispered loudly.

"We're going to see it," Kakashi whispered back.

Genma realized the Copy-nin was planning to go around the side. Not a good idea. "Fuck, Kakashi. We're not going anywhere," he said as loud as he dared. Kakashi wasn't listening and plowed ahead. Genma shook his head and thought Fuck! to himself. He stood there, considering his next move.

Kakashi got to the edge of the house, dropped to his knees and literally crawled forward along the edge of the house. As he got to the house next to Mizuki's, he slowed his pace and quickly decided his best path to get close enough to see and hear but not be seen.

Kakashi froze when he heard loud steps approaching from the front. He saw Mizuki being escorted by Tiger. They left the house and got downstairs, but didn't leave. Kakashi hadn't heard a thing, but he couldn't safely move until they left, so he hunkered down and kept a close watch. His luck was about to change. Bear and Ibiki gathered by the stairs looking back to where Mizuki was with Tiger, and then back at each other.

Kakashi strained to hear their conversation but only caught a word or two. He heard "forbidden" and "Orochimaru" but little else was clear. He saw the two ninjas heading back to where Tiger was with Mizuki, prepared to leave. The four walked to where Kakashi was hiding. It was the end of their conversation, and Ibiki raised his voice. Clear as a bell, Kakashi heard him yell to Mizuki: "This time, I don't think the Hokage is going to let you get away with this..." with that a teletransportation jutsu was performed and the ANBU, Ibiki and Mizuki disappeared.

The darkness and silence surrounded Kakashi again. He tried to process what he had heard and what had happened. An arrest in the middle of the night. A reference to the Hokage and getting away with it.

Kakashi was startled to hear footsteps nearby and almost bolted when he recognized Genma's ANBU mask. The Special Jōnin was creeping towards him. "What the hell happened? Why was Ibiki here?" he asked.

"I've no idea," Kakashi replied. "But I heard Ibiki saying something about the Hokage not letting Mizuki get away with something…"

"Getting away with what?"

"That's what I want to know."

Genma had seen and heard enough. "Ok, let's get the fuck out of here," he urged.

Kakashi didn't say a word but started to walk away. They ducked back across the neighbor's yard and out to the street in silence. Genma was suddenly tired. Kakashi couldn't stop thinking.

As they got to Genma's street, the Special Jōnin offered Kakashi a chance to spend the night at his house.

"Thanks, Gen. But I'm going back to my house," Kakashi replied. "Hey, I owe you one. I'm not going to forget your help tonight."

"It was nothing," Genma replied with a tired smile as he walked away.

Kakashi watched him walk away and quickly went Iruka's house. He noticed that Iruka had his bedroom's window open, but he wasn't awake. How careless can he be? Kakashi thought. Just because you're in the village, doesn't mean you're safe.

Silently he entered the bedroom, wrote a note and placed it on the Chūnin's desk. Before leaving, the Copy-nin couldn't help but to notice the sleeping ninja on the bed. He crouched down next to him and pulled his brown hair gently back. The scowl on his tanned face, made Kakashi realize that Iruka wasn't having a good dream. Kakashi wondered if there was something else bothering him, besides Mizuki and the blackmail.

Kakashi didn't notice he was gently passing his fingers through Iruka's hair until he felt the Chūnin stiring. He was waking up.

Iruka did felt a presence in his bedroom, someone touching his hair. He could smell a blueberry fragrance in the air. It was Kakashi, he was sure. But when he opened his eyes, no-one was there. Maybe he was dreaming.

Iruka looked around and saw a note on his desk. He took it and read it. it simply said: _Please meet me at the Academy, in the same place. it's urgent. - Kakashi._


	6. Chapter 6

Kakashi went back to his house, quickly took a shower and changed into the village's standard uniform. He hoped Iruka had read the note he'd left and was waiting for him.

As he was putting one of his gloves on, he looked at his fingers and thought about Iruka's hair. Kakashi really had no idea what was wrong with him. He was behaving strangely. It wasn't like him to act like this. Going to Mizuki's house and risk to be caught by Ibiki, because of what? Revenge? Why should he avenge Iruka? The Chūnin was nothing to him. But something was telling Kakashi that it was the right thing to do. Or maybe not? He should talk with the Hokage about it. But Iruka made him promise that he wouldn't tell anyone about the pictures and Mizuki.

Kakashi sighed. He left his house and went to the Academy.

Iruka had said that he was willing to have sex with Mizuki and the white-haired man had taken advantage of it. Now Iruka was trapped. He would do anything Mizuki asked him to. But Kakashi wouldn't allow this to happen. He didn't know what was it about Iruka, but he felt like something needed to be done, and quickly.

He nearly walked past the Academy. It was seeing Iruka standing in the street that caught his attention. As the street lights cut across the figure, Kakashi was struck by how out of place Iruka looked. He had on baggy pajama pants and a long t-shirt. His hair was down and he looked tired. Like he had just woken up from the middle of a deep sleep. Kakashi felt bad for a moment, but then he remembered why he was there.

Iruka watched him walk over. "Let's go around back, we can talk privately back there," he said, and turned and started walking up the Academy's training grounds. Kakashi followed, staying close to Iruka, not wanting to get separated in the dark.

A flash of lightning was followed a few seconds later by a low, distant rumble of thunder. Kakashi saw Iruka from behind in that flash, and the thought that flashed through his mind at that moment was wonder. Here was this unremarkable guy, in his rumpled bed clothes, walking up the training grounds of the Academy. Kakashi wondered why he'd left his house dressed that way. Maybe he took the word "urgent" in the note literally. The Copy-nin didn't mind waiting for him. But, oh well, never mind anyway. He was there and that all that matter. Kakashi was following him, and he couldn't tell himself why.

At that moment, Kakashi wanted to turn around and leave. Being there didn't make any sense. He didn't know this guy. Not really. As they got farther up the training grounds, the back of the Academy came in to view through the trees. He'd never been there. When he was a kid he didn't train with the other students. He used to train outside of the village. Sometimes with his sensei, other times with the village's Jōnins. His teachers thought he was too skilled to be training with the other kids. The Academy was big. Way too big. Even at night he could tell.

Kakashi looked at the back of this Chūnin walking in front of him and it all seemed wrong. The Copy-nin wasn't afraid; he was just getting mad at himself. Mad that he would come here in the middle of the night just to talk to this guy. Reason and his own experience were starting to take over. He had been on some kind of autopilot for hours, but he studied the back of the head in front of him and everything told him he should be at home and on his bed.

Kakashi's body reacted to his thoughts. He slowed his pace and finally came to a stop. He turned to the side and looked back over his path from the street. It was dark. He couldn't even see the road.

"Kakashi-san, are you ok?" he heard from behind. He turned back around and Iruka was standing there, so close that the Jōnin instinctively leaned away.

His tanned skin looked soft to touch. And with his hair down he looked so much younger and… _beautiful_ , somehow. Kakashi imagined how Iruka would look on his knees sucking his cock. Or laid on a bed crying from pleasure.

Kakashi immediately shook his head. "Fuck. I need to... I, uh..." he stumbled over his words. He heard himself. That was all he needed. That uncertainty in his voice, the weakness - all of that steeled his nerves. "I'm sorry Iruka-sensei to make you come here at this late hour, I need to go," he said and started walking quickly back home. He felt like a fool, but he felt a little better taking matters in to his own hands. Leaving was best. He could talk to the Chūnin tomorrow when his mind was clear and not thinking things he shouldn't being thinking. He picked up his pace.

It was now Iruka's turn to think.

 _What the hell?_ He thought. _Why is he leaving now? He makes me come here in the middle of the nigh and then leaves with no warning._ Iruka tried to think what he might have said or done. Hell, there was nothing. They had already exchanged two words. Iruka never expected Hatake Kakashi to be one of the crazy Jōnins he'd worked with before. Now he was seeing it. _Fuck it._ Iruka turned towards his apartment and started walking.

Five minutes later he stopped. He turned back to the street. No Kakashi in sight.

The Copy-nin said he had something to tell him. It had to be something important to come at this hour. That's why he was there, only on his pajamas. He'd read the word "urgent" and didn't get the time to change his clothes. He wasn't really thinking when he'd left his house. Now he was regretting. Kakashi didn't say anything. Just a retreat.

Shit had been going through Iruka's mind for days. He was worried. He was embarrassed. He was angry. His whole life seemed like it was spinning out of control. Mizuki. Naruto. This moody silver-haired crazy Jōnin.

What did he have to lose? Fuck it!

He started running, feeling the rubble and grass and other unidentifiable textures on the bottom of his bare feet. He stepped on two or things that hurt him, but he never slowed or altered his course. He lost his footing and almost fell, hitting the side of his head against a nearby tree. The dull pain only distracted him for a millisecond and then he was back on course, hardly having missed a beat.

As he reached the flower shop, he saw Kakashi walking slowly towards the Hokage tower. Iruka never hesitated. He ran towards the Jōnin. When he got close to the Copy-nin, and reach out to touch Kakashi's shoulder, he found himself being pinned against the wall by Kakashi's crushingly strong grip on his throat.

"K-Kakashi-san, it's me..." Iruka rasped painfully.

Kakashi's single steel-gray eye blinked twice before loosing his grip and let go of the younger man's throat. "Iruka-sensei?" Iruka was in front of him, desperately sucking in air through his mouth. "What the HELL is WRONG with you?" he yelled at the Chūnin. "You're a teacher for Kami's sake. Don't you teach your kids to never surprise a ninja like that?"

"I'm sorry," panted Iruka, still trying to catch his breath. "Sorry, I..."

"You're sorry, WHAT?" Kakashi yelled, glaring at him.

"You were going to tell me something..."

"I was going to FUCKING HURT you five seconds ago..." Kakashi was mad. He didn't know what's got to him, but he just felt… mad.

"Please, I..." Iruka walked in front of him. "You wanted to tell me som..."

"Please get out of my way," he sneered.

He tried to walk past the Chūnin, but Iruka didn't let him.

Kakashi tried to put himself together and go back to his nonchalant self but he could feel his whole body swell in anger. He was going to beat this Chūnin's ass, right here, right now. Iruka was stupid and reckless. An excuse for a ninja. And he was grabbing his arm.

Kakashi pulled his arm up and away, but Iruka scrambled to keep a grip on him. "Iruka-sensei, I'll tell you this one more time. Get off me." He hurled at the teacher, using his deepest and meanest tone.

Kakashi was losing control, but so was Iruka.

In an instant, all the energy and purpose drained through Iruka's body. He slumped forward, resting his forehead on the taller man's chest and began to cry. "I'm sorry, Kakashi-san… I'm sorry," he said over and over again, through the sobbing. He began to cry so hard, his whole body was shaking. His hands had released Kakashi's arm. He tried to put himself together, letting go of Kakashi's and leaning on the closest wall, the only thing preventing him from sliding to the ground.

As Kakashi stood here, watching this sad figure, his anger too started to drain away. It was a pathetic display, but the kind of thing even a hardened mind couldn't ignore, or turn away from, or disrespect. Only a cruel man wouldn't have at least felt pity for Iruka at this moment. It was raw. The teacher was falling. It was Kakashi's time to react.

"Next time just call my name, don't surprise me like that. I could have hurt you," he said softly, staring at the top of Iruka's head.

The younger man lifted his head slowly and pushed himself up with his hands. He moved too quickly for his current state, and his legs started to give way as his head began to swim. Iruka slumped backwards, he was falling again. But before he could understand what was happening he was picked up by strong arms

Kakashi laid the Chūnin down on the ground and checked on him.

Iruka was breathing hard still, had blood dripping down the side of his face and looked like he needed a doctor. He looked like a hit-and-run victim. Kakashi was worried.

"Iruka-sensei, you're bleeding" he said as he reached forward and gently touched the side of Iruka's forehead. As Kakashi's fingers brushed the broken skin, the tanned man winced and pulled away.

"I'll take you to the hospital," Kakashi said.

"No, no!" was Iruka's response, as he reached out and tugged on Kakashi's arm again, as he looked up at the Jōnin's face. This time Kakashi didn't flee from his grasp. "I just hit my head when I was coming here… I'll be fine. I just..."

His voice was lost in tears that sprang on Iruka suddenly. Kakashi could see him physically getting smaller. The Copy-nin only felt worry and compassion. He leaned towards Iruka, in what can only be described as a half-hearted hug, instinctively thinking that the teacher needed to be comforted.

"What can I do?" Kakashi asked.

Iruka leaned towards him and once again, cried in to his chest. Kakashi put his arm around him and pulled him closer, that instinct to comfort taking over all his other instincts. He had never hugged someone. He couldn't remember putting his arm around someone's shoulders. And he had never had someone crying in his arms before either. Well, there was Rin during Obito's funeral, but that was it.

Kakashi knew that Iruka needed him. If nothing else he needed him to just sit there now. And so Kakashi kept a grip around the Chūnin shoulder. He almost patted him with the other hand, like you might to try and soothe a crying baby in your arms, but caught himself. This was no baby. Kakashi didn't want to make it worse.

Iruka was coming back to reality. He tried to take stock of his surroundings. The tears stopped and he shifted a little. He realized there was an arm around his shoulders and an arm around a waist. His tears and drool has soaked the cloth in front of his face. He felt the warmth and could smell the sweet smell of the man who had him cradled in his arms. He felt safe.

Iruka gently hugged the man holding him, pulling him in tighter just for a moment. He didn't want to sit up, but he knew he had to. He just wanted another moment of warmth. Of quiet and safety. When he sat up, there would be talking, and right now that was the last thing he wanted.

Feeling he couldn't avoid it any longer, he released his grip and gently sat back.

He wiped his face on his own shirt and saw the dark stains from his dried blood. He felt like he might be sick. His feet and legs and arms were sore. He felt sore all over. He was covered in sweat, which gave him a clammy cool feeling all over in the otherwise thick and humid night air.

He was suddenly overwhelmed by embarrassment. He looked at Kakashi and couldn't see any emotion or expression in his single exposed eye. It was too dark. But he wasn't moving away. He was there, looking at him, close enough to touch. He wasn't leaving. That told Iruka enough.

"Are you ok?" Kakashi asked quietly. Hearing no response, he leaned over and nudged Iruka slightly with his upper body. "Iruka-sensei, are you ok?"

"Yeah," Iruka responded.

Kakashi nodded. His days and nights were certainly stranger these days. And all because of the Chūnin sitting next to him. Kakashi tried to think of something else. Pondering his situation now wasn't going to help. He was here. There was no point in worrying about it now.

Iruka couldn't help but feel shame. The ridiculousness of his actions and his reactions was undeniable. He needed to do the right thing. This had gone on long enough. "Kakashi-san, I'm going home now. I'm sorry for bothering you," he said, his head hung and his voice sounding as apologetic as his words.

"Maa, don't worry about it," Kakashi said gently. "I should be the one apologizing for making you meeting with me..."

They both felt drops of rain at the same time.

"I'm going back to my house. You should go, before we both get soaked," Iruka said.

"Yeah. You look tired, sensei."

Iruka smiled. "I am. I chased down a friend of mine through the streets and then hit my head on a tree. It's been a long night."

"Ohhhh... he still got jokes..." Kakashi said with a laugh.

The rain really started falling. They both stood up. Kakashi quickly, but Iruka a little more gingerly. The Jōnin reached out and braced his elbow. He wasn't going to let the Chūnin fall.

"My house is just one block away from here," he said to the teacher. "Let's go there."

Iruka was a little taken back with Kakashi's suggestion. He really wasn't expecting it. "No. thank you for the offer Kakashi-san but I better go home."

"Whatever you wish, sensei. But at least let me take you home."

Iruka was about to argue but decided it was better having someone taking home. He could feel a little bit lightheaded… "Ok." He said and both started walking slowly towards Iruka's house. "I owe you one this time, Kakashi-san." He said with a pained expression as he felt the broken skin of his feet and the stinging it caused.

Even in the darkness, Iruka's tanned foot and ankle could be seen. Kakashi looked at his face and arms. His hair. His skin. And thought how soft he looked. His skin practically glowed against all the darkness around him.

Kakashi always tried not to call too much attention. His clothes, his body. Everything about him was lazy, or dressed up to look that way. He thought of his own feet. Rough. A man's foot. Strong.

Iruka was the opposite, he thought. Vulnerable. He was brave in a way, and bold in moments - not afraid to push - but he couldn't go too far. It told the silver-haired man a lot.

"Why the hell did you leave your house barefooted anyway?"

"To be honest, I wasn't thinking when I left home. Besides, I didn't think I'd be out here long. Certainly not running," he said.

"Are you hurt? If you want I can carry you."

Iruka stopped at that. He looked at the Jōnin. He could only see Kakashi's right eye, but it was clear that he was dead serious. "No, no. it's ok Kakashi-san. I just skinned up a little," he reassured and started walking again.

The rain ended as quickly as it came. It was still and quiet again. When they got to Iruka's apartment the Chūnin turned to Kakashi before opening the door. "So, we're here. Thank you for the company, Kakashi-san, but I want to ask you, what did you want to tell me?"

Kakashi wasn't sure if he should bring the subject "Mizuki". It was a stressful night for Iruka already. And he didn't need more of that. "Why don't I tell you later Iruka-sensei? I'm little bit tired and all soaked. I think I should go home."

"Oh," Iruka thought about it for a second. "Well, I can't really offer you a shower," he said, opening his apartment door, in a inviting way "But, I think I can get you towel and tea. And we can talk."

Kakashi sighed. "Alright. Lead the way, sensei."


End file.
